Climate Change Toolkit

Project Period: March 2014 to November 2014.
Progress Report for the Period March-August 2014

Introduction

Awareness creation and formation of young people on environmental issues is one of CYNESA’s three
main objectives. Climate change is impacting severely on Africa’s water resources, biodiversity,
food security and human health. The nature of the challenge posed by climate change, including
climate justice, requires the input of all in society and a fundamental shift in lifestyles. Faith
communities and young people have a critical role in shaping the way climate change is addressed on
the African continent. CYNESA aims to effectively mobilize and engage young Catholics in addressing
climate change and the challenges it poses. The climate change toolkit project for youth in Jesuit
institutions in Africa was launched in March 2014, with the generous support of ARC, as one of
CYNESA’s contribution to the climate change crisis.
This document highlights the progress thus far and requests for additional resources for the second
phase of the project.
Project Highlights: March to August 2014

March 2014

The Climate Change Toolkit for youth in Jesuit High Schools in Africa project was officially
launched on 22nd March 2014, at a workshop in Nairobi, Kenya. The 2-day workshop brought together
20 participants from St. Aloysius Gonzaga High School (Kenya), Loyola High School and St. Peter
Claver High School (Tanzania) and the Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministry of the Zimbabwe
Jesuit Province (also representing St. Peter’s Kubatana High School,
Zimbabwe) and the CYNESA core team members.

Working group in session at the workshop

Speakers included experts from Tropical Biology, Kenya Organization for Environmental Education
(KOEE), Hekima College Jesuit School of Theology, the Kenya Conference of Catholic Bishops (KCCB)
and the Advisor of the Holy See Mission to UNEP and UN Habitat.
The workshop provided participants the opportunity to;

• Explore the causes and impacts of climate change in Africa
• Explore what Catholic Social Teaching and the Ignatian spirituality say about care of creation
• Learn from the experience of KOEE on the ESD-faith based toolkit and;
• Work together in groups to create a work plan for the climate change toolkit project.

CYNESA was also able to three of its members to a three day Climate Reality Leadership Corps,
Africa Training in Johannesburg, South Africa. The program offered the members an opportunity to
learn about climate change and significantly enhanced their capacity to effectively communicate
about the subject to a variety of audiences.

CYNESA Members at the Climate Reality Leadership Corps Africa Training

April – June 2014
The CYNESA team worked on developing a baseline study, to determine the level of knowledge on
climate change among students at St. Aloysius Gonzaga High School in Nairobi. The study will then
inform the kind of activities on climate change awareness to be conducted with the students between
September and November 2014.

In May 2014, the CYNESA director was invited by the Lutheran World Federation Youth (LWF-Youth), as
an ecumenical guest, to a youth training on advocacy tools in climate justice. The training in
Accra, Ghana, was also an opportunity to learn about the climate change toolkit developed by the
LWF-Youth and to explore partnerships on the ‘fastfortheclimate’ campaign.July – August 2014

Two interactive sessions on climate change were held with the students at Loyola High School (Dar
es Salaam) and St. Peter Claver High School (Dodoma), Tanzania. Consultative meetings with the
teachers involved in the project in the respective schools were also held. The students expressed
their desire for further workshops to help them craft concrete climate-related activities on their
school campuses.

A section of students at Loyola High School follow proceedings at the climate change workshop

CYNESA also made an interactive presentation on climate change at a symposium on ecology, held
during a Jesuit-sponsored international young adult event, ‘Magis Africa 2014’, in Harare during
the month of August.
The CYNESA team held a meeting with the Development Office of the Eastern Africa Jesuit province,
to explore involvement of Jesuit high schools in Uganda and South Sudan, as well as

the possibility of recommendation for additional funding for the project, to Jesuit mission offices
in Europe and the United States.
Plans for the period September to November 2014
Due to a tight school calendar, it was difficult to find a suitable time to conduct climate change
workshops at St. Peter’s Kubatana High School in Harare. The CYNESA team in Harare has now proposed
to engage at least two more Jesuit high schools in the workshops and to schedule them between
September and November 2014.
A final joint workshop with Loyola and St. Peter Claver High Schools will be conducted in Tanzania
during September, as a build up event to the UN Climate Summit, while St. Aloysius Gonzaga High
School will also host an event on climate change awareness.
If additional support is received from Jesuit sources, the Jesuit schools in Uganda and South Sudan
will be included in the project during this period.
The CYNESA team will do a progress review in late November/early December, to document all the
activities and input collected from the students and teachers. The outline of the draft toolkit
will also be prepared after this review.
Second Phase of the Climate Change Toolkit Project: (9 months)

The second phase of the Climate Change Toolkit project is planned for the period January 2015 to
September 2015. It is proposed that this phase will evolve in the following stages:
1. January 2015: Work on the outline of the draft toolkit will begin in January 2015,
incorporating climate change science relating to Africa, Catholic Social Teaching on climate change
and insights from Ignatian spirituality on care of creation.
2. February 2015: Toolkit working group meeting – This 2-day meeting will gather the project team
members and stakeholders to assess the activities of the previous and to enrich the outline of the
draft toolkit. The meeting is proposed to be held in February 2015.
3. March 2015: The draft toolkit will be released and introduced to the teachers and students who
are members of environmental clubs in the pilot schools.
4. April 2015 – June 2015: Workshops in the pilot schools using the draft toolkit will be
conducted and feedback on its effectiveness and relevance documented.
5. July 2015 – August 2015: Final review of the draft toolkit and preparation of the online
version will be conducted.

CYNESA's Mission is to offer the platform through which young Catholics across Africa, respond to the twin challenges of Environmental Degradation and Climate Change, from the perspective of Catholic social teaching on care for creation, paying attention to the most vulnerable.